Celitia was pushed out of the dormitory by Sophia with almost no resistance.

The forceful push from behind made her unsteady on her feet, and Celitia could only stagger forward several steps.

Only when she bumped into the railing in front did Celitia barely manage to stop.

The door closed heavily behind her, cutting off Sophia's angry voice.

"Get out—!!"

Looking at the tightly closed door, Celitia didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

It seemed she had gone too far, truly angering Sophia.

The autumn evening breeze came from afar, passing by Celitia's side, lifting her skirt and hair.

So cold...

Having removed her outer garment earlier in the dormitory, Celitia wore only a thin white chemise. Now, feeling the cold wind outside, she couldn't help but shiver.

Celitia tentatively walked back to the door and gently knocked: "Princess Sophia? Princess Sophia?"

Sophia's irritated voice came from inside: "What?"

"My things are still inside," Celitia said. "Could you at least give me my outer clothes?"

The sound of footsteps came from inside. Sophia really went to get the outer garment and walked back to the door. Just as she was about to unlock it, her hand suddenly paused.

"No! You deceiver, you're trying to trick me into opening the door!!"

Regarding Celitia, what others said and what Sophia had witnessed formed a huge contrast.

This led Sophia to instinctively believe that Celitia must be an extremely skilled imposter.

Can't open the door! Who knows what tricks that person will play!!

Seeing Sophia refuse to open the door, Celitia was momentarily speechless.

No, she hadn't done anything, so why did Sophia mistake her for a deceiver?

This was truly unfair.

Besides, even if she tricked Sophia into opening the door, with her abilities, she couldn't do anything to Sophia anyway. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been so easily thrown out of the dormitory.

Celitia knocked a few more times, but that wooden door seemed welded in place, showing no sign of opening.

The footsteps behind the door gradually receded.

"...Achoo!"

Another gust of cold wind blew by, making Celitia's nose itch, and she couldn't help sneezing.

After the first sneeze, she couldn't stop the ones that followed.

Celitia sneezed three or four times in succession, tears involuntarily filling her eyes, making those misty purple eyes even more watery and glistening.

This won't do... at this rate, her body certainly couldn't withstand it; a high fever would be the least of her concerns.

If there was really no other option, she would have to go downstairs to seek Shanie's help, hoping not to disturb her and her roommate...

Celitia thought helplessly, arms crossed over her chest to keep her body a bit warmer, preparing to go downstairs to find Shanie.

Just as she took one step, Celitia suddenly felt a tightness in her chest. It was as if something had pierced her heart, causing intense pain to spread rapidly from her chest throughout her entire body.

This feeling was very familiar.

Clutching her chest tightly, Celitia struggled to raise her head and look at the sky outside.

The sun had set, night had fallen, and stars were faintly visible across the entire sky.

Indeed, the moon had not appeared; today was the new moon.

From the moment she signed the contract with the elf girl Kassy, every new moon night, she would be repeatedly tormented by this unknown curse.

The former Sercis was strong enough that he could endure it, and it would pass.

So even those closest to him never discovered this.

But Celitia couldn't manage; with the slightest carelessness, the girl's body would fall gravely ill.

The last time she had contact with Kassy, awakening the curse on her body, Celitia had vaguely sensed that perhaps when the new moon came, the curse would activate again.

Why was this happening? Her former body had died, and the blood contract should have been severed. Why was the curse still affecting her current self?

Her head ached to the point of dizziness, her vision began to darken, and her lungs felt as if something was squeezing them, causing Celitia to cough violently uncontrollably.

"...Cough cough... cough cough cough..."

After just a few coughs, she forcefully covered her mouth, trying to stop the coughing, her teeth tightly biting her fingers, leaving a deep bloody mark on her pale fingers.

She didn't want others to see her in such a weak state.

Find a quiet place to hide. If she could just get through this night, everything would be alright.

Yes, if she endured, the curse would temporarily disappear, and her body would recover to its original state in a day or two...

Leaning her full weight on the railing, Celitia laboriously moved her steps, hazily walking bit by bit toward the outside.

After just one step, Celitia knew this plan was completely unfeasible.

Terrible... her body had no strength at all...

All strength in her body disappeared, her consciousness momentarily blank, her limbs losing control in that instant. Celitia slid down the railing and collapsed.

With a loud "thud," Celitia fell unconscious on the ground, with no further sign of life.

Sophia had actually heard all the sounds from outside the door.

When she heard the sneezing, Sophia still believed the person outside was deliberately acting pitiful to trick her into opening the door.

What convincing acting!

But she wouldn't be fooled again!!

When she heard the series of violent coughs, Sophia began to worry, anxiously pacing circles around the piles of miscellaneous items in the room.

Was this real? Or fake?

Looking at how composed and imposing that woman had appeared earlier, hadn't she seemed quite spirited?

But others had indeed mentioned that Celitia's health was poor...

Before Sophia could think much longer, a sudden loud "thud" came from outside, clearly the sound of someone falling.

Sophia was immediately anxious.

She quickly pulled back the curtain and looked out through the window, indeed seeing Celitia lying in the corridor.

The girl's body was tightly curled up, her light ashen gray curly hair spread out, along with her thin white dress, messily laid on the cold floor.

"Hey! Celitia!" Sophia called through the window. "Are you alright?!"

The girl in the corridor gave no response, still keeping her eyes tightly closed, her pale lips trembling slightly, gradually turning purplish-blue.

Now Sophia was truly panicked.

She immediately opened the door, rushed to the corridor, and bent down to check Celitia's condition.

As soon as her hand touched Celitia's shoulder, Sophia shuddered from the cold, as if she had touched not a girl's body but a block of ice.

"You, you, you—what's wrong with you?!"

All the previous resentment toward Celitia was thrown to the wind. Sophia was so anxious she was at her wits' end, distressed to the point of nearly crying.

Knowing that Celitia's health was poor, how could she have lost her temper and driven her out?

How could she have thought Celitia was trying to trick her when she asked for her clothes, stubbornly refusing to give them to her?